1. My mother, who is frail, has an emergency medical alarm attached to her phone, which cannot be used in the absence of a land line. I faxed (via PO) in a certified emergency request over a month ago!
2. It appears the Telstra overseas staff cannot deal with emergency connections or local connection problems, and are unwilling to refer problems back to Australia to be rectified.
3. I suspect that this is a systemic problem for anyone who has to get an urgent phone line under the NBN, and unfortunately use Telstra.
4. One cannot get a Telstra person in Australia to help sort out connection problems, and I am unable to deal with the NBN directly.

Our children and grandchildren will have to survive the dire impact of climate change.
Already the impact of Global Warming is effecting our:
Health – air quality, extreme weather
Food supply – farms, water, weather, energy
Shelter & Jobs – pollution, energy,
Industry – tourism, land produce, education
The rest of the world will have to pay for the share of carbon pollution the US is refusing to accept responsibility for. The US is the world’s biggest economy and the world’s second biggest carbon polluter.
This means our children and grandchildren, and our industry will be paying very dearly for the belligerent sort-sightedness and self-interest of the USA.

Apparently it's not illegal to parade around adorned with the symbols of Australia's enemy. People are becoming more brazen with the rise of white nationalist groups in Australia. You've all seen the photos of people on public transport displaying the swastika on clothes and tattoos. It is a deeply offensive symbol and it's probably in everyone's best interest to just ban it in public ay.

How can you bake a pie when you can only afford the flour?
Our Government has set unreasonable expectations for individuals living with a disability in Australia to find employment whilst on the Newstart Allowance.
"In 2013-14, 510,900 adults with a disability (or 15.8%) and a further 328,100 with a disability that included a core activity limitation (or 17.8%) were living below the poverty line (pp. 34)" (Australian Council of Social Service [ACOSS] , 2016).
A person living below the poverty line in Australia is suggested to have a net income of $426.30 per week (ACOSS, 2016). People living with a disability incur additional costs of living such as transportation, pharmaceuticals, medical procedures, adaptation to home or work environments etc. which contributes to the need of our Government to support these individuals and not place them into the unemployment bracket. Although unemployment benefits were originally intended to be interim payments for people temporarily out of work, the harsh reality for Newstart recipients is now very different, especially for people with a disability as many may never gain employment (Brotherhood of St Laurence, 2012).
Since the implementation of the Welfare to Work policies in 2006, there has been an increase of people who are considered to have a 'partial work capacity'. This is described as the capacity to work at least 15 hours per week or earn above the minimum wage over a two year period are deemed ineligible for the the Disability Support Pension (DSP) and placed onto the lower Newstart Allowance (NSA) (ACOSS, 2016).
According to the Department of Human Services (2017) a person with a disability on the Newstart allowance will receive the following payments weekly:
Newstart Allowance: $267.80
Rental Assistance: $66.10 (maximum)
Energy Supplement: $4.40
Total: $338.30
This demonstrates that the Newstart Allowance and additional supplements are still $88 below the poverty line for a single adult in Australia.
By raising the Newstart Allowance $100 for people with a disability, this will bring them above the poverty line and increase their opportunities to fulfill their roles within our community.
References:
Australian Council of Social Service. (2016). Poverty in Australia. Retrieved May 8, 2017, from http://www.acoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Poverty-in-Australia-2016.pdf
Brotherhood of St Laurence. (2012). Towards a fair and decent social security system. Retrieved May 1, 2017, from http://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&ved=0ahUKEwiYpdrkhd3TAhWCvbwKHZIwC7AQFggsMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.aph.gov.au%2FDocumentStore.ashx%3Fid%3D905e2705-aa60-4eca-8e0f-ded62357ba5d&usg=AFQjCNFpur32gMVjH4iT2XeZIv5bCZ5T0Q
Department of Human Services. (2016). Payment rates for energy supplement. Retrieved May 1, 2017, from https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/payment-rates-energy-supplement#newstart
Department of Human Services. (2017). Rent Assistance. Retrieved May 1, 2017, from https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/rent-assistance
Department of Human Services. (2017). Newstart Allowance. Retrieved May 1, 2017, from https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/newstart-allowance/how-much-you-can-get

The pathways to employer sponsored visas are significantly changed meaning that many internationals currently living, studying and working in Australia, including in rural and remote locations, will not have the ability to remain and continue to contribute to our country.
This has significant effects on their employers, friends and colleagues. It affects their landlords, their local shopping centres and petrol stations. It effects the schools that their children frequent. It affects the institutions they have been paying to study, the health insurance companies they have been paying, and very importantly it affects young Australians who have been introduced to new knowledge and skills as a result of their exposure to international workers.
Their presence has meant new jobs in retail, construction, hospitality, teaching and so much more. Their presence has made Australia more vibrant and colourful than ever before.
Do we really want to go backwards?
If, due to the recent visa changes you are an employer, landlord, individual or business effected by the possible loss of overseas workers or students in your community, please sign this petition. Thankyou.

Global mining company, Adani, have been unsuccessfully trying to secure finance for the Carmichael coal mine for years.
Now, the Turnbull Government is considering making the Australian public foot the billion dollar bill for Adani's rail line, which will transport coal from the mine to the port. This is despite his promise during the 2016 federal election that there would be no public funding of Adani's mine.
This billion dollar loan is risky, reckless, and deeply unpopular. Even members of the Prime Minister's own party oppose it, with Coalition backbenchers Bert Van Manen and Sarah Henderson speaking out.
This is public money, that would be better spent anywhere else! Funding our local hospitals and schools would be a good start. Or how about investing in renewable energy projects instead?

Global mining company, Adani, have been unsuccessfully trying to secure finance for the Carmichael coal mine for years.
Now, the Turnbull Government is considering making the Australian public foot the billion dollar bill for Adani's rail line, which will transport coal from the mine to the port. This is despite his promise during the 2016 federal election that there would be no public funding of Adani's mine.
This billion dollar loan is risky, reckless, and deeply unpopular. Even members of the Prime Minister's own party oppose it, with Coalition backbenchers Bert Van Manen and Sarah Henderson speaking out.
This is public money, that would be better spent anywhere else! Funding our local hospitals and schools would be a good start. Or how about investing in renewable energy projects instead?

Global mining company, Adani, have been unsuccessfully trying to secure finance for the Carmichael coal mine for years.
Now, the Turnbull Government is considering making the Australian public foot the billion dollar bill for Adani's rail line, which will transport coal from the mine to the port. This is despite his promise during the 2016 federal election that there would be no public funding of Adani's mine.
This billion dollar loan is risky, reckless, and deeply unpopular. Even members of the Prime Minister's own party oppose it, with Coalition backbenchers Bert Van Manen and Sarah Henderson speaking out.
This is public money, that would be better spent anywhere else! Funding our local hospitals and schools would be a good start. Or how about investing in renewable energy projects instead?

Mr Dutton, Pari is 25 years old, and she is a refugee. Your department imprisoned her on Nauru. A year ago she watched the love of her life, Omid, set himself alight and later die of his burns.
As if that suffering wasn’t enough, Pari has been locked up in Australia since those traumatic events, despite doctors and medical professionals urging you to release her from detention.
All Pari and Omid wanted to do was to build a life together. Now, Omid is dead, and Pari is suffering.
Mr Dutton, I stand with Pari, along with other Australians who are sick of seeing our government harm vulnerable people for no reason.
Pari is a 25 year old young woman who deserves a chance to rebuild her life in the community. Peter Dutton, you can choose to free her from detention and you should.

Unemployment is the prime cause of poverty in Australia and the private economy cannot by itself provide the number of jobs required. It is not a personal problem, it is a national problem and that must be the focus. Under section 23 of the United Nations charter on human rights identify the right to work as a HUMAN RIGHT.It is the responsibility of the national government to ensure that sufficient employment is provided. If it does not come from the private sector then the public sector has to expand to allow this.

Australia Post belongs to everybody. The charter for Customer Service of Australia Post states that they are required to be (a) "making the basic letter service available to all Australians on an equitable basis" and (b) "consulting directly with affected local communities when proposing changes to an existing one". Contrary to these committments, the delivery speed now discriminates according to how much you pay and no customers were consulted about this decision. Australia Post and the Prime Minister justified the change by stating that the business side of Australia Post is losing profit by propping up the regular mail. However, they seem to have forgotten that (a) the regular mail is core business and ensures a monopoly to the non-core businesse AND (b) Australia Post belongs to the public (at least for now). The CEO of Australia Post receives a large salary when the job of the postal delivery is not being done!